ISSUE: Scams

OUR VIEW: Government agencies on the alert for two types of scams

Scam. Scam. Scam.

It seems that everywhere you turn, someone is looking for a way to scam someone else out of dollars. So much of the underhanded operation is tied to identity theft.

Take two of the most recent warnings. They are not typical scams.

The S.C. Department of Consumer Affairs is warning that forwarded emails indicate so-called jury scams may be making a return appearance. The scam is a variation of identity theft ploys.

A scammer calls claiming to be an officer of the court. He or she tells you that you have failed to report for jury duty and that a bench warrant has been issued for your arrest.

The FBI, warning as early as 2005, calls this “social engineering.” The scam’s bold simplicity may be what makes it so effective, according to the FBI warning.

“Victims are often caught off-guard when frightened by something as unexpected as the threat of arrest,” said Brandolyn Thomas Pinkston, administrator of the S.C. Department of Consumer Affairs. “They may unwittingly give up sensitive information under these circumstances.”

FBI officials report that even when victims protest that they have not received a jury summons, the scammer attempts to verify the victim’s Social Security number and/or birth date in order to “clear up the matter.”

Another twist on the scam happens when the con artist offers a “solution” to the missed jury date: a fine, payable by credit or debit card, right over the phone. It’s a very simple scam that puts people on the defensive, then reels them in with the promise of a clean slate.

Protecting yourself is simple: Never give out personal or identifying information to a telephone caller in a conversation that you did not initiate.

Local or even federal court workers will not telephone to ask for personal information.

Don’t give out bank account, Social Security, or credit or debit card numbers, whether it be to someone trying to sell you something or someone claiming to be from a bank or government agency.

Examine your bank and credit card statements carefully every month. Challenge any unauthorized charges.

South Carolina consumers have the best protection of all: Freeze your credit with each of the three credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion). This can be accomplished for free, thanks to South Carolina’s Financial Identity Fraud and Identity Theft Protection Act. Once you have been sent your Personal Identification Number (PIN), your credit may be thawed in as little as 15 minutes. Freezing and thawing can be done as much as the consumer desires, and always at no charge.

Meanwhile, the state treasurer has issued a warning to all South Carolinians regarding a scam that has been discovered by the Treasurer’s Office involving phony state checks.

The scam involves people being chosen as “mystery shoppers.” A company will send a check to an individual and ask the individual to cash it, keep a certain amount as its payment, then wire the remaining balance to another address specified by that company.

The problem is that the check sent to the person chosen as a mystery shopper, in payment for their services, is a fake check designed to look like a check from the South Carolina Treasurer’s Office. The check looks real, but it is not. What happens is that the person is told to deposit the check, which is fraudulent, then is instructed to immediately wire funds from his or her personal account.

“The State Treasurer’s Office has a number of security measures we have put in place to help secure our state’s financial resources,” Treasurer Converse Chellis said. “We are able to catch fraudulent activity before the state loses money.”

As bad as it is that such scams are being perpetrated, it’s at least good news that state officials are on the alert. You should be too.

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